The present invention is generally directed at ambulatory devices. More particularly, the present invention is directed at a walking aid having improved ergonomics, strategic shock absorption properties, and a lightweight multi-structural shaft.
Walking is an important function in everyday life, even over short distances. Without the aid of ambulatory devices, many individuals have a difficult, if not an impossible, time of moving one's self even within the confines of their own home. As of 2008, an estimated 12 million people in the United States reported at least some mobility difficulty. Many of these individuals include senior citizens, whose population is ever drastically increasing as “baby boomers” begin to enter their later stages of life.
There exist in the prior art numerous examples of ambulatory devices such as walking canes, walking sticks, crutches and the like which aid in providing stability to persons requiring assistance when walking or standing. Generally, though, conventional walking canes contain a fixed design which imposes excessive stress on the user's hands, wrists and triceps, resulting in associated shoulder and back strain caused by gait compensation. Conventional cane shafts also have the deleterious effect of providing stiff repetitive shock to hands and arms as weight is applied to the cane, resulting in painful fatigue through frequent use. Such strains may be exacerbated by the repetitive motion necessary to walk even short distances, as well as the associated impact stresses transmitted through the cane and to the user when engaging the tip with the ground.
There presently exists a need in providing a durable walking cane to overcome the aforementioned obstacles. Such a walking aid would diminish excessive stress applied to the hands and wrists during its use, thereby decreasing gait compensation to reduce the occurrence of shoulder and back strain. An object of the present invention would therefore include providing a light-weight cane having an improved shaft and handle construction to achieve the aforementioned goals.